High-Performance 18650 Lithium-Ion Batteries Using Ni-Rich Cathode and Silicon Nanoparticles/MCMB Composites

Abstract

Silicon nanoparticles and MCMB (MesoCarbon MicroBeads) materials as well as their composites are used as anode materials of lithium-ion batteries with Ni-rich cathode materials. The particle size and loading content of silicon nanoparticles in the composite are investigated. The cylindrical lithium-ion batteries (18650) were fabricated in the dry room condition with a dew point of -40 °C. The stable structure of carbonaceous materials can alleviate the expansion problem of silicon by supporting silicon nanoparticles on its excellent conductive surface and structure. Therefore, the silicon-MCMB composite is a promising material for use as anode in Li-ion batteries. In this work, the silicon nanoparticles with < 10 nm in diameter exhibit high charge-storage performance. The NCA//Silicon-MCMB shows the first cycle capacity of 2.65 Ah per cell with an energy density of > 250 Wh/kg, an initial columbic efficiency of > 90%.